Interesting and unusual facts
History
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The University of Chichester can trace its origins back to 1839, which marks it out as one of the older institutions of higher education in the country. In 1873, Chichester became a training college for women as a result of the campaign by Louisa Hubbard to encourage the acceptance of women as teachers. Read more> |
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In 1786 Sir Richard Hotham began to transform Bognor Regis into a fashionable seaside resort. Part of his plan was to build Hothampton Crescent in 1793, a row of large Georgian houses to attract members of the Royal family. Today the buildings are known as the Dome building, Mordington and St Michael's, all of which are located on our Bognor Regis campus. |
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Princess Charlotte (daughter of King George IV) was born in 1796. As a young girl the Princess would come to Bognor Regis for her summer holidays. The Princess enjoyed bathing in the sea at least three or four times a week, and would often take afternoon tea in the top room of the Dome building. |
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JUNE 6, 1944 is a date that will be forever remembered in history – D-Day and the invasion of Normandy by Allied troops. The University (then Bishop Otter College) played a vital role in the liberation of Europe from Nazi occupation in World War II. Read more>> |
Famous Faces
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Wayne Hemingway is one of Britain’s best-known designers, putting his mark on fashion, interior design and architecture. He officially opened the University's ArtOne building in 2002. Wayne was presented with an honorary award at the University of Chichester's graduation ceremonies in October 2009. |
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Clem Burke (drummer with the rock/pop group Blondie) has worked with Dr Marcus Smith (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences) on the physiological demands of playing the drums during rehearsal and ‘live’ concerts (Smith, 2002). Read more>> |
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David Suchet, the country’s leading character actor (best known for ‘Poirot') was presented with an honorary award for excellence in the performing arts at the University of Chichester's graduation ceremonies in October 2008. Read more>> |
Politics and Media
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Media at Chichester has ranked highly in assessment of quality and student satisfaction since 1998, when our Media degree achieved the maximum score - 24 points out of 24 - in the HEFCE (QAA) inspection round. In 2007 Media was the 2nd ranked Media course nationally for student satisfaction. Read more>> |
Animal vegetable and mineral
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As part of BBC2, Truth About Food series, studies were undertaken by the School of Sport, Exercise & Health Sciences at the University of Chichester, on the effect of switching from a vegetarian diet to an omnivore diet. Read more>> |
Art and Culture
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The Otter Gallery at Chichester has a distinguished collection of 20th century British art, which includes work by artists such as Henry Moore, Patrick Heron, Stanley Spencer and Graham Sutherland. Read more>> |
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An old, disused piano in the University's chapel was inspected in 2004 and discovered to be a Steinway Centennial 'Fancy D' grand piano dating from 1877, and thought to be the oldest instrument of its kind in Europe. Read more |
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Music Scores written by Dr Stephen Baysted (Music dept.) have been used for Pizza Hut, Budweiser, McDonald’s and BMW advertisements. Read more |
Sport and Science
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The University has a well-established Olympic heritage dating back to the 1988 Seoul Games, and continues to be involved in the training and preparation of Olympic athletes. The University will host Training and Holding Camps for international athletes leading up to the 2012 London Olympic Games. Read more>> |
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The sports science laboratory at the University of Chichester is one of only three International Cricket Council-recognised test centres in the world, used for assessing the bowling action of international cricketers. Read more>> |
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The PE teacher training course at Chichester is one of the largest in the country and accounts for one in five of all trained PE teachers. Read more>> |